Sunday, November 28, 2010

Meet Some of Our Colorful Ancestors

JOHN CALVIN STOVALL

John Calvin Stovall was born in Lawrence County, Alabama 22 December 1832, his lineage is well documented back to the immigrant Bartholomew Stovall. John (Bartholomew, John, Josiah, David Joseph Sr., David Joseph Jr.) has Revolutionary War Patriot ancestors and was himself a veteran of the Civil War, that's where John's story gets tangled.

Like most young southern men John enlisted in Itawamba County, MS into the 19th Mississippi Infantry along with several other family members. John was wounded during the battle at Sharpsburg, MD. A wound that left him unable to use his left arm, John was sent on medical furlough back to his home in Mississippi. When his leave was over, John was still not able to return to his duties. His younger brother Alfred went to war as a substitute for John only to lose his life a few months later. John wasn't able to return to the fight, but returned to the war as a cobbler. His new assignment took him to Savannah, GA to make shoes for the CSA. Now the story takes a twist. John had married a Ms. Lindsey in Mississippi and together they had at least 3 children. That family was in Mississippi waiting for John Calvin to return home. We all know about William T. Sherman and his march to the sea. The route of destruction took Sherman through Savannah,. After the surrender, the Stovall family decided that since John didn't return he was killed in Savannah, leaving a widow and 3 young children.

That was not the case,John Calvin Stovall came to Etowah County Alabama shortly after the Civil War with a wife Marthy A. Hammack Stovall and at least seven other children. The 1880 census finds this family in Etowah County, AL. Apparently his wife Marthy A. Stovall died in the early 1890's and John Calvin married again in Etowah County, AL. This time he married Nancey A. (Nannie) Reed and this union produced three more children. John applied for this CSA pension and according to Nancey's Widow's CSA pension he died in Etowah County, AL in 1899.

In an interesting note, his first wife applied for and received a CSA widow's pension from the State of Texas. The documentation contained in all three pension applications leave no doubt that all were filed were for the same person.

Who knows why some of the men didn't return home after the Civil War, but we've had several incidents reported in our family files, but none as interesting as John Calvin Stovall.

Of course some creative researchers have family trees that include this man on the internet but these three families are the only possible connections to him.